Drier for sheeting



June 25, 1940. w. OWEN DRIER FOR SHEETING 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Wu. 1.. 07M 0 WE 7 TTORNEYS.

Ill llulIll'l'll.

. llllllllllllllll Filed JuI le 22, 1938 June 25, 1940. w OWEN DRIER FOR SHEETING .5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 22, 1938 INVENTOR. M1. LIHN O WEN ATTRNEYS.

June 25, 1940. w. OWEN DRIER FOR SHEETING Filed June 22, 1938' 5Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. Ml-L-(HM OWEN @Q, TORNEYS.

June 25, 1940. w OWEN DRIER FOR SHEETING Filed June 22, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVEN TOR. ML LII-7M O WEN TORNEYS.

Jung 25, 1940. w OWEN 2,205,539

DRIER FOR SHEETING Filed June 22, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 IN V EN TOR. W/L L. ll-7M Owavv By I A i ORNEYS.

Patented June 25,1940

William Owen, Pittsburgh, Pa.,

assignor to Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, Allegheny County, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 22, 1938, steam. 215,142

10 Claims.

The invention relates to an apparatus for drying sheet material, such as the synthetic resin sheeting employed in the manufacture of safety 7 is a vinyl acetal. This material is supplied in rolls and the apparatus is designed to unwind the material, dry it and against wind it into a roll, thus bringing it to the moisture content necessary for satisfactory lamination with glass sheets. The primary objects of the invention are the provision of a very compact apparatus of low cost which willcarry out the steps 'above recited, and in which the sheeting during its manipulation in carrying it through the drier will be free from strain tending to stretch and thin any portions thereof. Certain embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a plan view. Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 11-11 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section taken at right angles to a section of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on an enlarged scale through a part of the drive mechanism. Figs. 5, 6 and '7 are detail views on an enlarged scale showing a modification, Fig. 5 being a plan view, Fig. 6 a section on the line VI-VI of Fig. 5, and Fig. 'Ia side elevation. And Figs. 8 and 9 are detail views illustrating another modification, Fig. 8 being a front elevation and Fig. 9 a side elevation.

Referring to the drawings, the casing 9 of the drier is of cylindrical shape and includes a double bottom wall "I, II and a double top wall l2, l3. The side walls comprise two plates l4 and IS with the space It therebetween to provide for an outflow of air as hereinafter explained. At the center of the casing is a vertical standard ll, whose wall is perforated throughout, as indicated in Fig. 2, the perforations being employed for circulation purposes. The 40 walls l0, l2 and N are also similarly perforated for circulation purposes. The supply of air is furnished from the blower l8 driven from the motor l9, such air being brought through the eye of the blower through a suitable air intake heater 29. The air which is thus supplied to the space 2| passes. in part vertically into the casing through perforations Na in the bottom wall It, and in part passes up into the standard l1 and then flows laterally through. the per- 50 forated wall of the standard and is discharged to the space It through the inner wall of the glass, one of which casing which is perforated throug'houtso as to give a good distribution of the air. A part of the air also flows upward to the space 22 through 3 the perforated top wall l2 of the casing. The

stack 24 constitutes an outlet from the space 22. This arrangement provides for a thorough circulation of air from the center of the casing outward through all parts of the sheeting which is carried therethrough, as later described, and 5 also upward through the folds of such sheeting. The standard I! carries at its upper end a post 25 on which a cylindrical support 26 is mounted for rotation, such support being provided with the casters 21 running on the top of the casing 10 I1 and with the two sets of ball bearings 28, 28. Extending radially of the support 26 and secured rigidly thereto are a series of arms 29, 30,'3I, 32, etc., which arms are employed to carry the sheeting in festoons as more fully set 15 forth later. The support 26 is, in the operation of the machine, given a step by step rotation with periods of rest between each movement, in which periods of rest, and also while the support is rotating, the sheeting is fed into the g drier and removed therefrom, the major portion of a festoon of the sheeting being inserted at each rest period and the major portion of an-. other festoon which has made the circuit is removed. In order to accomplish the rotation of 25 the member 26 carrying the arms, the upper edge of the member is provided with a set of ratchet teeth 33 which are engaged by a pawl 34 (Fig. 3) carried on an arm 35, the pivot 36 a being guided horizontally in the slot 31 in one 30 of the structural members constituting a part of the top of the casing. The arm is reciprocated from a crank disc 39 which is driven from a motor 48 seated on the top of the casing through the intermediary of suitable reduction 35 gearing. This gearing includes a reducer in the casing 4|, which drives the shaft 42 (Fig. l), the sprocket 43 on the shaft driving thesprocket 44 through a chain, and the intermittently driven clutch device 45, which gives a pause of suitable length between the reciprocations of the connecting rod.

One form of device for giving the intermittent movement required is shown in Fig. 4. The gear .46 keyed to the shaft 41 drives the gear 48, which is loose on the shaft 42. Keyed to the shaft alongside of the gear 48 is a clutch member 58 which cooperates with an interfitting clutch member 5|, the latter being loose on the shaft. The hub of the member 5i extends through the 50 bearing support 52 and has keyed thereto at theleft of such support the crank disc 39. The key 53 serves to lock the clutch members 50 and 5| together during those intervals at which the crank disc is to be rotated. The key is 55 carried in a groove in the wall of the member 5| with a leaf spring 59 on one side tending to force it outward into engagement with a groove in the wall of the member 59. The position of the key is governed by the lever 55 normally urged upward by the spring 56, but adapted to be moved downward by the cam 51 attached to the side of the gear 49. At each revolution, therefore, of the slowly moving gear 49, the parts assume the position shown in the drawings with the key 52 engaging the grooves in both clutch members, so that they are locked together, while the shaft 42 and crank disc 39 make one revolution. When this revolution is completed (the cam 51 now being out of registry with the lever 56, so that the lever is held in its up position by the spring 56), the cam part 56 on the lever engages the key and pushes it up into its groove and out of engagement with the clutch member 59, so that the member 5| and the crank disc stop rotating. The drive of the shaft 42 which feeds the material to be dried is thus continuous, while the drive of the crank disc 99 which rotates the support and its radial arms is intermittent.

The roll of sheeting 59 which is to be dried is mounted upon a shaft 69 (Fig. 3) which tits at its ends into a pair of slots 6| in the plates-62 and 63, such shaft 69 extending substantially radially of the casing as indicated in Fig. 1. The sheeting after drying, is delivered from the easing to form the roll 64, a shaft 65 being provided to carry this roll of sheeting, and such shaft being located adjacent to and parallel to the shaft 69' which carries the roll 59. This shaft 95 is also mounted in slots 66 similar to the slots 6|. The rolls 59 and 64 are driven from a pair of feed rolls 61 and 69, which are parallel tothe shafts 69 and 65 and are driven from the motor 49 through the intermediary of the shaft 42, the sprocket chain 69 passing around sprockets 19 and II and the gears 72, 13 and 14. The gear 12 is mounted on the shaft which carries the sprocket H, while the gear 13 is an idler interposed between the gears 12 and H, so that the shafts 9| and 65 are both driven in the same direction, which as indicated in Fig. 3, is counterclockwise. The sheeting is thus fed down into the casing from the roll 59, while the other end of the sheeting is fed upwardly from the casing and wound onto the roll 64. Provision is thus made for feeding the sheeting into and out of the casing by the gripping pressure between the rolls 59 and 61 and between the rolls 64 and 69, and it will be seen that the mounting of the shafts 69 and 65 in the inclined slots provides for giving the necessary pressure to grip the sheeting. Also that this arrangement is self-adjusting, in that the character of the feed is not affected, due to the exhaustion of the material from the roll 59 or to the building up of the roll 64. Spring clips 29a and Ma depending from the top wall of the casing are provided, as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3, such clips serving to clamp the festoons to two when such arms are in the position of Fig. 3. At such time, the festoonA is clamped at its forward edge to the arm 9|, while the festoon B is cl ed at its rear edge to the arm 29. This prevents slippage over the arms due to unbalanced festoon weight while the festoon A is being com-'- pleted and the festoon B is being removed.

The intermediate step by step movement of the supporting member 26 carrying the arms provides a period of rest between each movement and it is during this period of rest that the major their inner to their ratchet teeth 99a which are of the radial arms,"

' 99 and portion of a festoon, such as the one marked A in Fig. 3, is fed down into the space between the arm II and the arm 99 from the roll 59. At this same period of rest, the major portion of the festoon B is fed from the space between the arm 99 and the arm 29, the feeding up of such festoon being completedat the same time that the festoon A is completed. When these feeding actions are nearly completed, the rotary movement of the member 26 carrying the radial arms is star'ted again and continues until the arm 99 shifts over to the position just occupied by the arm 9! and the arm 29 shifts over to the position Just occupied by the arm 30, after which the cycle is repeated.

It will be noted that the upper sides of the radial arms over which the sheeting is draped are inclined downwardly from the horizontal from outer ends. The purpose of this is to provide for the festooning of the material without any stretching of the outer edges of the sheeting, such as would necessarily occur,

if the tops of the arms were located in horizontal planes. When the arms are inclined downward at the proper degree, as illustrated, the total length of the outer edge of the sheeting lying in the casing is the same as the total length of the inner edge, so .that there is no tendency to deform the material by stretching it along its outer edge.

Referring to the modification shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, it it desirable that there should be some shifting of the festoons at their areas of support upon the arms, otherwise these portions would not be exposed to the same drying action as the balance of the sheet and the sheet would not be exposed throughout its entire length to the same stretching action. Provision is, therefore, made in this modification for giving the sheeting a movement in the direction of its length over the arms as it travels through the drier. This result is accomplished by mounting the shafts 15, which act as the arms, for rotation in the hub 16 and providing gear means for giving these shafts a slight rotary movement during the periods in which the arms are being moved around the axis of the supporting member 26. Each of the shafts is, therefore, provided at its inner end with a bevel gear 11 and these sears mesh with a gear 19 which is fixed to the top of the standard 11 and to the post 19. The hub 16 is provided with engaged by a pawl similar to the pawl 34 (Fig. 3) and similarly operated. It follows that as the hub" rotates about the axis of the casing, the shafts 15 are rotated and the sheeting is fed over the tops of the arms a substantial distance during the period of rotation of a festoon about the axis of the casing.

Figs. 8 and 9 illustrate a modification, in which provision is made for feeding a number of strips of sheeting 99, 6|, and 82 simultaneously into and out of the casing. In this case, the various rolls of material are mounted on the same shaft 99, which is driven as heretofore described. and the rolls of material rest upon the pairs of rolls 85, and 96 and 91, the rolls 96 and 96 being the feed rolls corresponding to the rolls 6'! and 69 of the structure heretofore described, and the rolls 94 and 91 being idler rolls. In this case, the rolls 99 and 61 are provided with flanges 89 for guiding the sheeting. In this case, also, the additional driven roll 99 may be employed lying between the rolls 96 and 96. Theoperation is in support mounted for rotation in the casing and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, means for giving the vertical support a step by step movement of rotation, each step being equal in distance to the spaces between the radial arms, and means for rotating said rotary members so that a festoon of sheeting is fed between a pair of arms by the first member and at the same time another festoon of sheeting is fed by the second member from the space between a pair of arms which have completed a circuit through the casing.

vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheetj ingto be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, means for giving the vertical support a step by step movement of rotation, each step being equal in distance to the spaces between the radial arms, and means for rotating said rotary members so that a festoon of sheeting is fed between a pair of arms by the first member and at the same time another festoon of sheeting is fed by the second member from the space between a pair of arms which have completed a circuit through the casing, the .means for rotating said members comprising a motor and a pair of rolls driven thereby, one of which is adapted to engage the roll of sheeting which is fed into the casing and the other of which is adapted to engage the other roll of sheeting which is carried by the second rotary member.

3. In a drier for sheeting, a casing, a vertical support mounted for rotation in the casing and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, means for giving the vertical support a step by step movement of rotation each step being equal in distance to the spaces between the radial arms, and means for rotating said rotary members so that a festoon of sheeting is fed between a pair of arms by the first member and at the same time another festoon of sheeting is fed'by the second member from the space between a pairfof arms which have completed a circuit through the casing, the means for rotating said members comprising a motor and a pair of rolls driven thereby, one of which is adapted to engage the roll of sheeting which is fedinto the casing and the other of which is adapted to engage the other roll of sheeting which is carried by the second rotary member, said first and'second rotary members being mounted for gravity movement toward the members of said pair of rolls.

4. In a drier for sheeting, a casing, a vertical support mounted for rotation in the casing and provided with a series of spaced radially extending shafts, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll.

up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, means for giving the vertical support a 10 step by step movement of rotation, each step beingequal in distance to the spaces between the shafts, means for rotating the shafts as the vertical'support rotates, and means for rotating said rotary members so that a festoon of sheet- 16 I ing is fed between a pair of shafts by the first member and at the-same time another festoon of sheeting is fed by the second member from the space between a pair of arms which have completed a circuit through the casing. W

5. In a drier for sheeting, a casing, a vertical support mounted for rotation in the casing and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, asecond rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, means for giving the vertical supporta step by step movement of rotation, each step-being equal in distance to the spaces between the radial arms, and means for rotating said rotary members so that a festoon of sheeting is fed between a pair of arms by the. first member and at the same time another festoon of sheeting is fed by the second member from the space between a pair of arms which have completed a circuit through the casing, said arms being inclined downwardly 40 from the horizontal from their inner to their outer ends.

6. In a drier for sheeting, a vertical cylindrical casing having its wall perforated throughout, a vertical cylindrical standard at the center of the 'casing having its wall perforated throughout,

means for supplying heated air to the 'lower end of the standard so that a circulation is provided radially through the casing from the standard to the walls of the casing,'a vertical support mounted for rotation on the upper end of, the standard and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the support for carrying'a, roll of the sheeting to be 65 dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adaptedto receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, and

means for rotating the vertical support and said rotary members in timed relation so that a festoon of sheeting is fed from the first rotary member between each pair of arms as the space between the arms passes such member, and a festoon of the sheeting which has completed the circuit of the casing is simultaneously withdrawn therefrom and wound on the second supporting member.

7. In a drier for sheeting a vertical cylindrical casing having a double wall with a space between throughout, means for supplying heated air to the 1| lower end of the standard so that a circulation is provided radially through the casing from the standard to the walls of the casing, a vertical support mounted for rotation on the upper end of the standard and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the. casing also extending radially with respect to the support for carryinga roll the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, and means for rotating. the vertical support and said rotary members in timed relation so that a festoon oi sheeting is fed from the first rotary member between each pair of arms as the space between the arms passes such member, and a iestoon of the sheeting which has completed the circuit of the casing is simultaneously withdrawn therefrom and wound on the second supporting member.

8. In a drier for sheeting, a casing, a vertical support mounted for rotation in the casing and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, means for giving the vertical support a step by step movement of rotation each step being equal in distance to the spaces between the radial arms, means for rotating said rotary members so that a festoon of sheeting is fed between a pair of arms by the first member and another festoon of sheeting is fed by the second member from the space between a pair of arms which have completed a circuit through the casing, and spring means carried by the casing above the arms, one of which is positioned so as to clamp the sheeting to the upper side of the arm on the forward side of the space to which the festoon is delivered, and the other of which is positioned s,aos,sse

- support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, and

means for rotating the vertical support and said rotary members in timed relation so that a tea toon oi sheeting is fed from the first rotary member between each pair of arms when each space between a pair of arms is brought adjacent such meniber and a iestoon oi the sheeting which has completed the circuit is simultaneously withdrawn therefrom and wound on the second supporting member.

10. In a drier i'or sheeting, a casing, a vertical support mounted for rotation in the casing and provided with a series of spaced radially extending arms, a rotary member above the casing also extending radially with respect to the vertical support for carrying a roll of the sheeting to be dried, a second rotary member above the casing adjacent and parallel to the first rotary member and adapted to receive and roll up the sheeting after it has passed through the casing, and means for rotating the vertical support and said rotary members in timed relation so that a festoon oi sheeting is fed from the first rotary member between each pair of arms when each space between a pair of arms is brought adjacent such member and a festoon of the sheeting which has completed the circuit is simultaneously withdrawn therefrom and wound on the second supporting member, said arms being inclined downwardly from the horizontal from their inner to their outer ends.

WILLIAM OWEN. 

